Notice2025-06506
Self-Regulatory Organizations; BOX Exchange LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To Amend Rules 3120 (Position Limits), 5020 (Criteria for Underlying Securities), and 5055 (FLEX Equity Options) to List and Trade Options on the iShares Ethereum Trust
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
April 17, 2025
Issuing agencies
Securities and Exchange Commission
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 73 (Thursday, April 17, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 73 (Thursday, April 17, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16298-16305]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-06506]
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Release No. 34-102828; File No. SR-BOX-2025-08]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; BOX Exchange LLC; Notice of Filing
and Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed Rule Change To Amend Rules
3120 (Position Limits), 5020 (Criteria for Underlying Securities), and
5055 (FLEX Equity Options) to List and Trade Options on the iShares
Ethereum Trust
April 11, 2025.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that
on April 10, 2025, BOX Exchange LLC (``BOX'' or ``Exchange'') filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'') the
proposed rule change as described in Items I and II below, which Items
have been prepared by the self-regulatory organization. The Commission
is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule from
interested persons.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
The Exchange proposes to amend Rules 3120 (Position Limits), 5020
(Criteria for Underlying Securities), and 5055 (FLEX Equity Options) to
list and trade options on the iShares Ethereum Trust (the ``Trust'').
The text of the proposed rule change is available from the principal
office of the Exchange, at the Commission's Public Reference Room and
also on the Exchange's internet website at <a href="https://rules.boxexchange.com/rulefilings">https://rules.boxexchange.com/rulefilings</a>.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
In its filing with the Commission, the self-regulatory organization
included statements concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the
proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the
proposed rule change. The text of these statements may be examined at
the places specified in Item IV below. The self-regulatory organization
has prepared summaries, set forth in Sections A, B, and C below, of the
most significant aspects of such statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The Exchange proposes to amend Rule 5020 regarding the criteria for
underlying securities. Specifically, the Exchange proposes to amend
Rule 5020(h) to allow BOX to list and trade options on Exchange-Traded
Funds (``ETFs'') that represent interests in the Trust. This is a
competitive filing based on a proposal recently submitted by Nasdaq
ISE, LLC (``ISE'') and approved by the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the ``Commission'').\3\
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\3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 102798 (April 9,
2025) (Order Approving SR-ISE-2024-35, as modified by Amendment No.
1) (``ISE Approval Order'').
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Current Rule 5020(h) provides that, subject to certain other
criteria set forth in that Rule, securities deemed appropriate for
options trading include Exchange-Traded Fund Shares (``ETFs''), that
represent certain types of interests and exchange-traded products
(``ETPs'') structured as trusts that hold precious metals (which are
deemed commodities), or Bitcoin (which is another crypto currency and
deemed a commodity). In addition, Rule 5020(h)(1) requires that the
Exchange-Traded Fund Shares must either (1) meet the criteria and
guidelines set forth in paragraphs (a) and (b) of Rule 5020,\4\ or (2)
be available for creation or redemption each business day from or
through the issuing trust, investment company, commodity pool or other
entity in cash or in kind at a price related to net asset value, and
the issuer is obligated to issue Exchange-Traded Fund Shares in a
specified aggregate number even if some or all of the investment assets
and/or cash required to be deposited have not been received by the
issuer, subject to the condition that the person obligated to deposit
the investment assets has undertaken to deliver them as soon as
possible and such undertaking is secured by the delivery and
maintenance of collateral consisting of cash or cash equivalents
satisfactory to the issuer of the Exchange-Traded Fund Shares, all as
described in the Exchange-Traded Fund Shares' prospectus.
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\4\ Rule 5020(h)(1) provides for guidelines to be followed by
the Exchange when evaluating potential underlying securities for BOX
option transactions.
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The Exchange proposes to add the Trust to the list of ETFs on which
BOX may list options in Rule 5020(h). The Shares are issued by the
Trust, a Delaware statutory trust. The Trust will operate pursuant to a
trust agreement (the ``Trust Agreement'') between the Sponsor,
BlackRock Fund Advisors (the ``Trustee'') as the trustee of the Trust
and will appoint Wilmington Trust, National Association, as Delaware
Trustee of the Trust (the ``Delaware Trustee'') by such time that the
Registration Statement is effective. The Trust issues Shares
representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net
assets. The assets of the Trust will consist only of ether (``ether''
or ``ETH'') held by a custodian on behalf of the Trust, except under
limited circumstances when transferred through the Trust's prime broker
temporarily (described below), and cash. Neither the Trust, nor the
Sponsor, nor the Ether Custodian (as defined below), nor any other
person associated with the Trust will, directly or indirectly, engage
in action where any portion of the Trust's ETH becomes subject to the
Ethereum proof-of-stake validation or is used to earn additional ETH or
generate income or other earnings. Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC
(the ``Ether Custodian''), is the custodian for the Trust's ether
holdings, and maintains a custody account for the Trust (``Custody
Account''); Coinbase, Inc. (the ``Prime Execution Agent''), an
affiliate of the Ether Custodian, is the prime broker for the Trust and
maintains a trading account for the Trust (``Trading Account''); and
The Bank of New York Mellon is the custodian for the Trust's cash
holdings (the ``Cash Custodian'' and together with the Ether Custodian,
the ``Custodians'') and the administrator of the Trust (the ``Trust
Administrator''). Under the Trust Agreement, the Trustee may delegate
all or a portion of its
[[Page 16299]]
duties to any agent, and has delegated the bulk of the day-to-day
responsibilities to the Trust Administrator and certain other
administrative and record-keeping functions to its affiliates and other
agents. The Trust is not an investment company registered under the
Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the ``1940 Act''). The
investment objective of the Trust is to reflect generally the
performance of the price of ether. The Trust seeks to reflect such
performance before payment of the Trust's expenses and liabilities. The
Shares are intended to constitute a simple means of making an
investment similar to an investment in ether through the public
securities market rather than by acquiring, holding and trading ether
directly on a peer-to-peer or other basis or via a digital asset
platform. The Shares have been designed to remove the obstacles
represented by the complexities and operational burdens involved in a
direct investment in ether, while at the same time having an intrinsic
value that reflects, at any given time, the investment exposure to the
ether owned by the Trust at such time, less the Trust's expenses and
liabilities. Although the Shares are not the exact equivalent of a
direct investment in ether, they provide investors with an alternative
method of achieving investment exposure to ether through the public
securities market, which may be more familiar to them. An investment in
the Shares is backed by ether held by the Ether Custodian on behalf of
the Trust. All of the Trust's ether will be held in the Custody
Account, other than the Trust's ether which is temporarily maintained
in the Trading Account under limited circumstances, i.e., in connection
with creation and redemption Basket \5\ activity or sales of ether
deducted from the Trust's holdings in payment of Trust expenses or the
Sponsor's fee (or, in extraordinary circumstances, upon liquidation of
the Trust). The Custody Account includes all of the Trust's ether held
at the Ether Custodian, but does not include the Trust's ether
temporarily maintained at the Prime Execution Agent in the Trading
Account from time to time. The Ether Custodian will keep all of the
private keys associated with the Trust's ether held in the Custody
Account in ``cold storage''.\6\ The hardware, software, systems, and
procedures of the Ether Custodian may not be available or cost-
effective for many investors to access directly. The Exchange believes
that offering options on the Trust will benefit investors by providing
them with an additional, relatively lower cost investing tool to gain
exposure to spot ether as well as a hedging vehicle to meet their
investment needs in connection with ether products and positions.
Similar to other commodity ETFs in which options may be listed on BOX
(e.g. SPDR[supreg] Gold Trust, the iShares COMEX Gold Trust, the
iShares Silver Trust, or the abrdn Gold ETF Trust),\7\ the proposed ETF
is a trust that essentially offers the same objectives and benefits to
investors. Options on the Trust will trade in the same manner as
options on other ETFs on BOX. Exchange Rules that currently apply to
the listing and trading of all options on ETFs on BOX, including, for
example, Rules that govern listing criteria, expirations, exercise
prices, minimum increments, position and exercise limits (with the
proposed changes), margin requirements, customer accounts and trading
halt procedures, will apply to the listing and trading of options on
the Trust on BOX. Today, these rules apply to options on the various
commodities ETFs deemed appropriate for options trading on BOX pursuant
to Rule 5020(h).
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\5\ The Trust issues and redeems Shares only in blocks of 40,000
or integral multiples thereof. A block of 40,000 Shares is called a
``Basket.'' These transactions take place in exchange for ether.
\6\ The term ``cold storage'' refers to a safeguarding method by
which the private keys corresponding to the Trust's ether are
generated and stored in an offline manner, subject to layers of
procedures designed to enhance security. Private keys are generated
by the Ether Custodian in offline computers that are not connected
to the internet so that they are more resistant to being hacked.
\7\ See Rule 5020(h).
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The Exchange's initial listing standards for ETFs on which options
may be listed and traded on BOX will apply to the Trust. Pursuant to
Rule 5020(a), a security on which options may be listed and traded on
BOX must be duly registered (with the Commission) and be an NMS stock
(as defined in Rule 600 of Regulation NMS under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended (the ``Act'')), and be characterized by a
substantial number of outstanding shares that are widely held and
actively traded.\8\ Additionally, Rule 5020(h)(1) requires that ETFs
must either (1) meet the criteria and standards set forth in Rules
5020(a) and (b),\9\ or (2) be available for creation or redemption each
business day from or through the issuing trust, investment company,
commodity pool or other entity in cash or in kind at a price related to
net asset value, and the issuer is obligated to issue Exchange-Traded
Fund Shares in a specified aggregate number even if some or all of the
investment assets and/or cash required to be deposited have not been
received by the issuer, subject to the condition that the person
obligated to deposit the investment assets has undertaken to deliver
them as soon as possible and such undertaking is secured by the
delivery and maintenance of collateral consisting of cash or cash
equivalents satisfactory to the issuer of the Exchange-Traded Fund
Shares, all as described in the Exchange-Traded Fund Shares'
prospectus. The Trust satisfies Rule 5020(h)(1), as it is subject to
this creation and redemption process.
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\8\ The criteria and guidelines for a security to be considered
widely held and actively traded are set forth in Rule 5020(b),
subject to exceptions.
\9\ Rules 5020(a) and (b) provide guidelines to be followed by
the Exchange when evaluating potential underlying securities for BOX
option transactions.
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Options on the Trust will be subject to the Exchange's continued
listing standards set forth in Rule 5030(h) for ETFs and ETPs deemed
appropriate for options trading pursuant to Rule 5020(h). Specifically,
Rule 5030(h) provides that funds that were initially approved for
options trading pursuant to Rule 5020(h) shall be deemed not to meet
the requirements for continued approval, and the Exchange shall not
open for trading any additional series of option contracts of the class
covering that fund, if the fund ceases to be an NMS stock or if the
fund is halted from trading in their primary market. In addition,
options on funds may be subject to the suspension of opening
transactions in any of the following circumstances: (1) in the case of
options covering funds approved for trading under Rule 5020(h)(1)(i),
in accordance with the terms of subparagraphs (b)(1),(2),(3) and (6) of
Rule 5030; (2) in the case of options covering funds approved for
trading under Rule 5020(h)(1)(ii) (as is the case for the Trust),
following the initial twelve-month period beginning upon the
commencement of trading in the fund on a national securities exchange
and are defined as an NMS stock, there are fewer than 50 record and/or
beneficial holders of such fund for 30 or more consecutive trading
days; (3) the value of the index or portfolio of securities, non-U.S.
currency, or portfolio of commodities including commodity futures
contracts, options on commodity futures contracts, swaps, forward
contracts and/or options on physical commodities and/or financial
instruments and money market instruments on which the ETFs are based is
no longer calculated or available; or (4) such other event shall occur
or condition exist that in the opinion of the Exchange makes further
[[Page 16300]]
dealing in such options on BOX inadvisable.
Options on the Trust will be physically settled contracts with
American-style exercise.\10\ Consistent with current Rule 5050, which
governs the opening of options series on a specific underlying security
(including ETFs and ETPs), the Exchange will open at least one
expiration month for options on the Trust \11\ at the commencement of
trading on BOX and may also list series of options on the Trust for
trading on a weekly,\12\ monthly,\13\ or quarterly \14\ basis. The
Exchange may also list long-term equity option series (``LEAPS'') that
expire from twelve to one hundred eighty months from the time they are
listed.\15\
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\10\ See Rule 5010 (Rights and Obligations of Holders and
Writers), which provides that the rights and obligations of holders
and writers of option contracts of any class of options dealt in on
the Exchange shall be as set forth in the Rules of the Clearing
Corporation. See also OCC Rules, Chapter VIII, which governs
exercise and assignment, and Chapter IX, which governs the discharge
of delivery and payment obligations arising out of the exercise of
physically settled stock option contracts. OCC Rules can be located
at: <a href="https://www.theocc.com/getmedia/9d3854cd-b782-450f-bcf7-33169b0576ce/occrules.pdf">https://www.theocc.com/getmedia/9d3854cd-b782-450f-bcf7-33169b0576ce/occrules.pdf</a>.
\11\ See Rule 5050(b). The standard expirations are subject to
certain listing criteria for underlying securities described within
Rule 5020. Standard listings expire the third Friday of the month.
The term ``expiration date'' (unless separately defined elsewhere in
the OCC By-Laws), when used in respect of an option contract
(subject to certain exceptions), means the third Friday of the
expiration month of such option contract, or if such Friday is a day
on which the exchange on which such option is listed is not open for
business, the preceding day on which such exchange is open for
business. See OCC By-Laws Article I, Section 1. Pursuant to Rule
5050(c), additional series of options of the same class may be
opened for trading on the Exchange when the Exchange deems it
necessary to maintain an orderly market, to meet customer demand or
when the market price of the underlying stock moves more than five
strike prices from the initial exercise price or prices. New series
of options on an individual stock may be added until the beginning
of the month in which the options contract will expire. Due to
unusual market conditions, the Exchange, in its discretion, may add
a new series of options on an individual stock until the close of
trading on the business day prior to expiration.
\12\ See IM-5050-6.
\13\ See IM-5050-13.
\14\ See IM-5050-4.
\15\ See Rule 5070.
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Pursuant to IM-5050-1(b), which governs strike prices of series of
options on ETFs, the interval of strikes prices for series of options
on the Ether Funds will be $1 or greater when the strike price is $200
or less and $5 or greater where the strike price is over $200.\16\
Additionally, the Exchange may list series of options pursuant to the
$1 Strike Price Interval Program,\17\ the $0.50 Strike Program,\18\ the
$2.50 Strike Price Program,\19\ and the $5 Strike Program.\20\ Pursuant
to Rule 7050, where the price of a series of a Trust option is less
than $3.00, the minimum increment will be $0.05, and where the price is
$3.00 or higher, the minimum increment will be $0.10.\21\Any and all
new series of Trust options that the Exchange lists will be consistent
and comply with the expirations, strike prices, and minimum increments
set forth in Rules 5050 and 7050, as applicable.
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\16\ The Exchange notes that for options listed pursuant to the
Short Term Option Series Program, the Monthly Options Series
Program, and the Quarterly Options Series Program, IM-5050-6, IM-
5050-13, and IM-5050-4, specifically set forth intervals between
strike prices on Quarterly Options Series, Short Term Option Series,
and Monthly Options Series, respectively.
\17\ See IM-5050-2.
\18\ See IM-5050-5.
\19\ See IM-5050-3.
\20\ See Rule 5050(d)(5).
\21\ If options on the Ether Funds are eligible to participate
in the Penny Interval Program, the minimum increment of $0.01 below
$3.00 and $0.05 above $3.00 would apply. See Rule 7050(a)(3). See
also Rule 7260 (which describes the requirements for the Penny
Interval Program).
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Trust options will trade in the same manner as any other ETF
options on BOX. The Exchange Rules that currently apply to the listing
and trading of all ETF options on BOX, including, for example, Rules
that govern listing criteria, expirations, exercise prices, minimum
increments, margin requirements, customer accounts, and trading halt
procedures will apply to the listing and trading of Trust options on
BOX in the same manner as they apply to other options on all other ETFs
that are listed and traded on BOX, including the precious-metal and
Bitcoin-backed commodity ETFs already deemed appropriate for options
trading on BOX pursuant to current Rule 5020(h).
Rule 5055 currently permits the Exchange to authorize for trading a
FLEX Equity Option class on any equity security if it may authorize for
trading a Non-FLEX Equity Option class on that equity security pursuant
to Rule 5020. The proposed rule change amends Rule 5055 to exclude the
Trust from this provision.
The Exchange also proposes to amend Rule 3120. Specifically, the
Exchange proposes to amend IM-3120-2 to provide a position limit of
25,000 same side option contracts for Trust options. Additionally,
pursuant to Rule 3140, the exercise limits for options on the Trust
will be equivalent to this proposed position limit.\22\ In considering
the appropriate position and exercise limits for the Trust options, the
Exchange reviewed the data in the ISE Approval Order. In the ISE
Approval Order, ISE considered the Trust's market capitalization and
average daily volume (``ADV'') against those of other underlying
securities, as well as the proposed position and exercise limit in
relation to other options. In measuring the Trust against other
securities, ISE aggregated market capitalization and volume data for
securities that have defined position limits utilizing data from The
Options Clearing Corporations (``OCC'').\23\ ISE also considered the
trading volume for the Trust in terms of daily and notional volumes
during the period of time the Trust has been trading from July 23, 2024
through December 14, 2024. The average daily volume for this time
period is 5,302,533 shares and the average notional volume for this
time period is $127,825,276.00. The Trust had 93,352 shareholders.\24\
ISE indicated both the average daily volume and the average notional
volume experienced an uptick at launch (which can be typical for
anticipated product launches) then levelled off for several months.
Renewed growth in the cryptocurrency market caused increased growth
beginning in early November 2024. ISE reviewed the market
capitalization and ADV of 3,930 options on single stock securities
excluding ETFs.\25\ Next, ISE aggregated this data based on market
capitalization and ADV and grouped option symbols by position limit
utilizing statistical thresholds for ADV and market capitalization for
each position limit category (i.e. 25,000, 50,000 to 65,000, 75,000,
100,000 to less than 250,000, 250,000 to less than 500,000, 500,000 to
1,000,000 and greater than 1,000,000). Rule 3120 sets out position
limits for various contracts. For example, like ISE, a 25,000 contract
limit applies to those options having an underlying security that does
not meet the requirements for a higher options contract limit. ISE
indicated it performed this exercise to demonstrate the Trust's
position limit relative to other options symbols in terms of market
capitalization and ADV. For reference the market capitalization for the
Trust was 1.16 billion \26\ with an ADV, for the preceding three months
prior to October 22, 2024, of greater than 2.99 million shares. By
comparison, other options symbols with similar
[[Page 16301]]
market capitalization and ADV have a position limit of 50,000 contracts
or 75,000 contracts.\27\ From a 90-day ADV perspective, ISE reviewed
statistics that indicated that the Trust had a 90-day ADV greater than
each of the stocks in the 100,000 contracts to 249,000 contracts range.
Therefore, the proposed 25,000 same side position and exercise limits
for options on the Trust are conservative. Second, ISE reviewed the
Trust's data relative to the market capitalization of the entire ether
market in terms of exercise risk and availability of deliverables.
Utilizing data as of October 22, 2024, there were 120,392,960 Ethereum
in circulation. The price of Ethereum on October 22, 2024, was $2,620
per coin which equates to a market capitalization of greater than $315
billion US dollars. If a position limit of 25,000 options were
considered (the position limit that would be typically assigned based
upon data), the exercisable risk would represent less than 4.35237% of
the outstanding shares of the Trust.\28\ Since the Trust has a creation
and redemption process managed through the issuer, the position limit
sought can also be compared to the total market capitalization of the
entire Ethereum market. In this case, the exercisable risk represented
by 25,000 options on the Trust would be less than 0.03% of the market
capitalization of all outstanding ether. Assuming a scenario where all
25,000 options on ether shares were exercised given the proposed 25,000
per same side position limit, this would have a virtually unnoticed
impact on the entire ether market. This analysis demonstrates that the
proposed 25,000 per same side position limit (and exercise limit) is
conservative and appropriate for options on the Trust. Third, ISE
reviewed the proposed position limit by comparing it to position limits
for derivative products regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission (``CFTC''). While the CFTC, through the relevant Designated
Contract Markets, only regulates options positions based upon delta
equivalents (creating a less stringent standard), ISE examined
equivalent ether futures position limits. In particular, ISE looked at
the CME Ethereum futures contract \29\ that has a position limit of
8,000 futures.\30\ On October 22, 2024, CME ether futures settled at
$2,629. Using a contract multiplier of $50, a position limit of 8,000
futures would have a notional value $1.0516 billion (8,000 x $50 x
$2,629). Using an October 22, 2024, share price of $19.91 for shares of
the Trust, a futures position of 8,000 contracts, with a notional value
of $1.0516 billion dollars would equate to an options position of
528,176 contracts ($1.0516 billion (notional value of 8,000 Ethereum
futures contracts)/$19.91 (price of the Trust shares) = 52,817,679
(Trust shares)/100 (the number of shares represented by one options
contract)) = 528,176 options contracts. Because substantial sums of any
distributed options portfolio are likely to be out of the money on
expiration, an options position limit equivalent to the CME position
limit for Ethereum (considering that all options deltas are <=1.00)
should be a bit higher than the CME implied 528,176 contract limit. The
Exchange notes, unlike options contracts, CME position limits are
calculated on a net futures-equivalent basis by contract and include
contracts that aggregate into one or more base contracts according to
an aggregation ratio(s).\31\ Therefore, if a portfolio includes
positions in options on futures, CME would aggregate those positions
into the underlying futures contracts in accordance with a table
published by CME on a delta equivalent value for the relevant spot
month, subsequent spot month, single month and all month position
limits.\32\ If a position exceeds position limits because of an option
assignment, CME permits market participants to liquidate the excess
position within one business day without being considered in violation
of its rules. Additionally, if at the close of trading, a position that
includes options exceeds position limits for futures contracts, when
evaluated using the delta factors as of that day's close of trading but
does not exceed the limits when evaluated using the previous day's
delta factors, then the position shall not constitute a position limit
violation. Considering CME's position limits on futures for Ethereum,
the Exchange believes that that the proposed same side position limits
are more than appropriate for the Trust options.
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\22\ See Rule 3140(c).
\23\ ISE represented these computations were based on OCC data
from October 22, 2024, and that data displaying zero values in
market capitalization or ADV were removed.
\24\ ISE represented it obtained this number from Broadridge
Financial Solutions, Inc. on December 19, 2024.
\25\ The Trust has one asset and therefore is not comparable to
a broad based ETF where there are typically multiple components.
\26\ ISE acquired this figure as of October 22, 2024. See
<a href="https://www.ishares.com/us/products/337614/ishares-ethereum-trust-etf">https://www.ishares.com/us/products/337614/ishares-ethereum-trust-etf</a>. The global supply of ether grows each day ether are minted.
\27\ ISE determined the median market capitalization for 50,000
contracts was 788,000,000 million and the median market
capitalization for 75,000 contracts was 1,037,000 billion. Further,
placing the Trust at 50,000 contracts would rank it in the 59th
percentile in market capitalization and placing the Trust at 75,000
contracts would rank it in the 46th percentile in market
capitalization.
\28\ The 4.4% was calculated as follows: 2,500,000 (exercisable
stock from position limit)/57,440,000 (shares outstanding on October
22, 2024) = 4.35237%.
\29\ CME Ether Futures are described in Chapter 350 of CME's
Rulebook.
\30\ See CME Rulebook, Chapter 5, Position Limit, Position
Accountability and Reportable Level Table in the Interpretations &
Special Notices.
\31\ See CME Rulebook Chapter 5, Position Limit, Position
Accountability and Reportable Level Table in the Interpretations &
Special Notices.
\32\ Id.
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In analyzing the proposed position limit for options on the Trust,
ISE also considered the supply of ether. Specifically, ISE examined the
number of market participants with a position limit of 25,000 contracts
that would need to exercise in unison to put the underlying asset under
stress. In the case of options on ether, the proposed 25,000 same side
position and exercise limit effectively restricts a market participant
from holding positions that could be exercised in excess of 2,500,000
shares of the Trust. Utilizing data from October 22, 2024, the Trust
had 57,440,000 shares outstanding, therefore 22.976 participants would
have to simultaneously exercise their position limits in order to
create a scenario that may put the underlying asset (shares of the
Trust) under stress. ISE noted that historically, from observation
only, it appears that no more than five market participants holding
options positions in any single security have exercised in unison in
any option. As unlikely an occurrence as all market participants
exercising their positions in unison would be, if it were to occur, it
should be noted that even such an occurrence would not likely put the
Trust under stress as economic incentives, would induce the creation of
more shares through the ETF creation and redemption process. Further,
given that the current global supply of Ethereum, the underlying asset
of the Trust, is 120,392,960 \33\ coins and each Ethereum coin can
currently be exchanged (Ethereum to USD and then USD to Trust shares)
for 131.6 shares of the Trust another 15,843,979,598 shares of the
Trust could be created by the underlying ETF. In addition, as of
October 22, 2024, a 25,000 contract position limit for options on the
Trust would represent less than 4.3524% of the outstanding shares of
the Trust (2,500,000 (position limit exercise)/57,440,000 (shares
outstanding of the Trust on October 22, 2024)) = 4.3524%.\34\ Also, as
of October 22, 2024, a 25,000 contract position limit for options on
the Trust would represent less than 0.01578% of the global supply of
ether (2,500,000 (position limit exercise)/120,392,960 (number of
ether) x 131.6 (Trust shares per ether)) = 0.01578%.
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\33\ This figure was acquired as of October 22, 2024. See
<a href="https://www.ishares.com/us/products/337614/ishares-ethereum-trust-etf">https://www.ishares.com/us/products/337614/ishares-ethereum-trust-etf</a>. The global supply of ether grows each day ether are minted.
\34\ See <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/">https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/</a>.
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Today, the Exchange has an adequate surveillance program in place
for
[[Page 16302]]
options. The Exchange intends to apply those same program procedures to
options on the Trust that it applies to the Exchange's other options
products, including options on ETFs.\35\ The Exchange would also review
activity in the underlying Trust when conducting surveillances for
market abuse or manipulation in the options on the Trust. Additionally,
the Exchange is a member of the Intermarket Surveillance Group
(``ISG'') under the Intermarket Surveillance Group Agreement. ISG
members work together to coordinate surveillance and investigative
information sharing in the stock, options, and futures markets. As
such, the Exchange would be able to obtain information regarding
trading in shares of the Trust from their primary listing markets and
from other markets that trade shares of the Trust through ISG. In
addition, the Exchange has a Regulatory Services Agreement with the
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (``FINRA'') for certain market
surveillance, investigation and examinations functions. Pursuant to a
multi-party 17d-2 joint plan, all options exchanges allocate amongst
themselves and FINRA responsibilities to conduct certain options-
related market surveillance that are common to rules of all options
exchanges.\36\
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\35\ The surveillance program includes surveillance patterns for
price and volume movements as well as patterns for potential
manipulation (e.g., spoofing and marking the close).
\36\ Section 19(g)(1) of the Act, among other things, requires
every self-regulatory organization (``SRO'') registered as a
national securities exchange or national securities association to
comply with the Act, the rules and regulations thereunder, and the
SRO's own rules, and, absent reasonable justification or excuse,
enforce compliance by its members and persons associated with its
members. See 15 U.S.C. 78q(d)(1) and 17 CFR 240.17d-2. Section
17(d)(1) of the Act allows the Commission to relieve an SRO of
certain responsibilities with respect to members of the SRO who are
also members of another SRO (``common members''). Specifically,
Section 17(d)(1) allows the Commission to relieve an SRO of its
responsibilities to: (i) receive regulatory reports from such
members; (ii) examine such members for compliance with the Act and
the rules and regulations thereunder, and the rules of the SRO; or
(iii) carry out other specified regulatory responsibilities with
respect to such members.
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The underlying shares of spot Ethereum ETPs, including the Trust,
are also subject to safeguards related to addressing market abuse and
manipulation. As the Commission stated in its order approving proposals
of several exchanges to list and trade shares of spot Ethereum-based
ETPs, including the Trust (``Ethereum ETP Approval Order''),\37\
``[e]ach Exchange has a comprehensive surveillance-sharing agreement
with the [CME] via their common membership in ISG. This facilitates the
sharing of information that is available to the CME through its
surveillance of its markets, including its surveillance of the CME
Ethereum futures market.'' \38\ The Exchange states that, given the
consistently high correlation between the CME Ethereum futures market
and the spot Ethereum market, as confirmed by the Commission through
robust correlation analysis, the Commission was able to conclude that
such surveillance sharing agreements could reasonably be ``expected to
assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative acts and
practices in the specific context of the [Ethereum ETPs].'' \39\ In
light of surveillance measures related to both options and futures as
well as the underlying Trust,\40\ the Exchange believes that existing
surveillance procedures are designed to deter and detect possible
manipulative behavior which might potentially arise from listing and
trading the proposed options on the Trust. Further, the Exchange will
implement any new surveillance procedures it deems necessary to
effectively monitor the trading of options on the Trust.
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\37\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 100224 (May 23,
2024), 89 FR 46937, 46941 (May 30, 2024) (File Nos. SR-NYSEARCA-
2023-70; SR-NYSEARCA-2024-31; SR-NASDAQ-2023-045; SR-CboeBZX-2023-
069; SR-CboeBZX-2023-070; SR-CboeBZX-2023-087; SR-CboeBZX-2023-095;
SR-CboeBZX-2024-018) (Order Granting Accelerated Approval of
Proposed Rule Changes, as Modified by Amendments Thereto, To List
and Trade Shares of Ether-Based Exchange-Traded Products).
\38\ See Ethereum ETP Approval Order, at 46938 (footnotes
excluded).
\39\ See id.
\40\ See id.
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Finally, quotation and last sale information for ETFs is available
via the Consolidated Tape Association (``CTA'') high speed line.
Quotation and last sale information for such securities is also
available from the exchange on which such securities are listed.
Quotation and last sale information for options on the Trust will be
available via Options Price Reporting Authority (``OPRA'') and major
market data vendors. The Exchange has also analyzed its capacity and
represents that it believes BOX and OPRA have the necessary systems
capacity to handle the additional traffic associated with the listing
of new series that may result from the introduction of options on the
Trust up to the number of expirations currently permissible under the
Rules.
The Exchange believes that offering options on the Trust will
benefit investors by providing them with an additional, relatively
lower cost investing tool to gain exposure to the price of Ethereum and
hedging vehicle to meet their investment needs in connection with
Ethereum -related products and positions. The Exchange expects
investors will transact in options on the Trust in the unregulated
over-the-counter (``OTC'') options market,\41\ but may prefer to trade
such options in a listed environment to receive the benefits of trading
listing options, including (1) enhanced efficiency in initiating and
closing out positions; (2) increased market transparency; and (3)
heightened contra-party creditworthiness due to the role of OCC as
issuer and guarantor of all listed options. The Exchange believes that
listing Trust options may cause investors to bring this liquidity to
BOX, would increase market transparency and enhance the process of
price discovery conducted on BOX through increased order flow. The ETFs
that hold financial instruments, money market instruments, precious
metal commodities, or Bitcoin on which BOX may already list and trade
options are trusts structured in substantially the same manner as the
Trust and essentially offer the same objectives and benefits to
investors, just with respect to different assets. The Exchange notes
that it has not identified any issues with the continued listing and
trading of any ETF options, including ETFs that hold commodities (i.e.,
precious metals and Bitcoin) that it currently lists and trades on BOX.
Finally, the Exchange notes that applicable Exchange rules will require
that customers receive appropriate disclosure before trading options in
the Trust.\42\ Further, brokers opening accounts and recommending
options transactions must comply with relevant customer suitability
standards.\43\
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\41\ The Exchange understands from customers that investors have
historically transacted in options on ETFs in the OTC options market
if such options were not available for trading in a listed
environment.
\42\ See Rules 4020(b), (e) and 4100.
\43\ See Rule 4040.
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2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposal is consistent with the
requirements of Section 6(b) of the Act \44\ in general, and Section
6(b)(5) of the Act,\45\ in particular, in that it is designed to
prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to promote just
and equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation and
coordination with persons engaged in facilitating transactions in
securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a
free and open market
[[Page 16303]]
and a national market system, and, in general to protect investors and
the public interest. Specifically, the Exchange believes that the
proposal to list and trade options on the Trust will remove impediments
to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and a national
market system and, in general, protect investors because offering
options on the Trust will provide investors with a greater opportunity
to realize the benefits of utilizing options on an ETF based on spot
Ethereum, including cost efficiencies and increased hedging strategies.
The Exchange believes that offering options on a competitively priced
ETF based on spot Ethereum will benefit investors by providing them
with an additional, relatively lower-cost risk management tool,
allowing them to manage, more easily, their positions and associated
risks in their portfolios in connection with exposure to spot Ethereum.
Additionally, the Exchange's offering of Trust options will provide
investors with the ability to transact in such options in a listed
market environment as opposed to in the unregulated OTC options market,
which would increase market transparency and enhance the process of
price discovery conducted on BOX through increased order flow to the
benefit of all investors. Today, BOX lists options on other commodity
ETFs structured as a trust, which essentially offer the same objectives
and benefits to investors, and for which the Exchange has not
identified any issues with the continued listing and trading of options
on those ETFs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\44\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\45\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exchange also believes the proposal to permit options on the
Trust will remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free
and open market and a national market system, because options on the
Trust will comply with current Exchange Rules. Options on the Trust
must satisfy the initial listing standards and continued listing
standards currently in the Rules, applicable to options on all ETFs,
including options on other commodity ETFs already deemed appropriate
for options trading on BOX pursuant to Rule 5020(h). Additionally, as
demonstrated above, the Trust is characterized by a substantial number
of shares that are widely held and actively traded. Further, Rules that
currently govern the listing and trading of options on ETFs, including
permissible expirations, strike prices, minimum increments, position
and exercise limits (as proposed herein), and margin requirements, will
govern the listing and trading of options on the Trust.
The Exchange believes the proposed position and exercise limits are
designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices and
promote just and equitable principles of trade, as they are designed to
address potential manipulative schemes and adverse market impacts
surrounding the use of options, such as disrupting the market in the
security underlying the options. The proposed position and exercise
limits for options on each of the Trust are 25,000 contracts. These
position and exercise limits are the lowest position and exercise
limits available in the options industry, are extremely conservative
and more than appropriate given the Trust's market capitalization, ADV,
and high number of outstanding shares. The proposed position limit, and
exercise limit, is consistent with the Act as it addresses concerns
related to manipulation and protection of investors because, as
demonstrated above, the position limit (and exercise limit) is
extremely conservative and more than appropriate given the Trust is
actively traded. In support of the proposed position and exercise
limits for options on the Trust are 25,000 contracts, the Exchange is
citing the in depth analysis ISE did in the ISE Approval Order. As
noted above, in the ISE Approval Order, ISE considered the: (1) Trust's
market capitalization and ADV, and proposed position limit in relation
to other securities; (2) market capitalization of the entire Ethereum
market in terms of exercise risk and availability of deliverables; (3)
proposed position limit by comparing it to position limits for
derivative products regulated by the CFTC; and (4) supply of Ethereum.
Based on the Exchange's review of these analyses, the Exchange believes
that setting position and exercise limits for options on the Trust at
25,000 contracts is more than appropriate. The proposed position and
exercise limits reasonably and appropriately balance the liquidity
provisioning in the market against the prevention of manipulation. The
Exchange believes these proposed limits are effectively designed to
prevent an individual customer or entity from establishing options
positions that could be used to manipulate the market of the underlying
as well as the Ethereum market.\46\
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\46\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 39489 (December 24,
1997), 63 FR 276 (January 5, 1998) (SR-CBOE-1997-11).
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The Exchange represents that it has the necessary systems capacity
to support the new Trust options. As discussed above, the Exchange
believes that its existing surveillance and reporting safeguards are
designed to deter and detect possible manipulative behavior which might
arise from listing and trading ETFs, including Trust options. The
Exchange's existing surveillance and reporting safeguards are designed
to deter and detect possible manipulative behavior which might arise
from listing and trading options on ETFs and ETPs, such as (existing)
precious metal-commodity backed ETP options as well as the proposed
options on the Trust. The Exchange believes that its surveillance
procedures are adequate to properly monitor the trading of options on
the Trust in all trading sessions and to deter and detect violations of
Exchange rules. Specifically, the Exchange's market surveillance staff
will have access to surveillances that it conducts, and that FINRA
conducts on its behalf, with respect to the Trust and, as appropriate,
would review activity in the underlying Fund when conducting
surveillances for market abuse or manipulation in the options on the
Trust. Additionally, the Exchange is a member of the ISG under the
Intermarket Surveillance Group Agreement. ISG members work together to
coordinate surveillance and investigative information sharing in the
stock, options, and futures markets. In addition, the Exchange has a
Regulatory Services Agreement with the FINRA and as noted herein,
pursuant to a multi-party 17d-2 joint plan, all options exchanges
allocate regulatory responsibilities to FINRA to conduct certain
options-related market surveillances. Further, the Exchange will
implement any new surveillance procedures it deems necessary to
effectively monitor the trading of options on the Trust.
The underlying shares of spot Ethereum ETPs, including the Trust,
are also subject to safeguards related to addressing market abuse and
manipulation. As the Commission stated in its order approving proposals
of several exchanges to list and trade shares of spot Ethereum-based
ETPs, ``[e]ach Exchange has a comprehensive surveillance-sharing
agreement with the CME via their common membership in the Intermarket
Surveillance Group. This facilitates the sharing of information that is
available to the CME through its surveillance of its markets, including
its surveillance of the CME ether futures market.'' \47\ The Exchange
states that, given the consistently high correlation between the CME
Ethereum futures market and the spot Ethereum market, as confirmed by
the
[[Page 16304]]
Commission through robust correlation analysis, the Commission was able
to conclude that such surveillance sharing agreements could reasonably
be ``expected to assist in surveilling for fraudulent and manipulative
acts and practices in the specific context of the [Ether ETPs].'' \48\
In light of the foregoing, the Exchange believes that existing
surveillance procedures are designed to deter and detect possible
manipulative behavior which might potentially arise from listing and
trading the proposed options on the Trust. Further, the Exchange will
implement any new surveillance procedures it deems necessary to
effectively monitor the trading of options on Ethereum ETPs.
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\47\ See Ethereum ETP Approval Order, 89 FR at 46938.
\48\ See Ethereum ETP Approval Order, 89 FR at 46941.
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The Exchange believes the proposed rule change to exclude the Trust
from being eligible for trading as FLEX Equity Options is consistent
with the Act, because without this prohibition, trading a FLEX Equity
Option in the Trust would otherwise establish different position and
exercise limits than those proposed herein.\49\
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\49\ The Exchange may submit a separate rule filing that would
permit the Exchange to authorize for trading FLEX Equity Options on
the Trust (which filing may propose changes to existing FLEX Equity
Option position limits for such options if appropriate).
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Finally, the Exchange notes that this proposal will remove
impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and open market and
a national market system and, in general, protect investors because
applicable Exchange rules will require that customers receive
appropriate disclosure before trading options in the Trust \50\ and
will require that brokers opening accounts and recommending options
transactions must comply with relevant customer suitability
standards.\51\
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\50\ See Rules 4020(b), (e) and 4100.
\51\ See Rule 4040.
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on competition not necessary or appropriate in
furtherance of the purposes of the Act. In this regard and as indicated
above, the Exchange notes that the rule change is being proposed as a
competitive response to a filing submitted by ISE that was recently
approved by the Commission.\52\
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\52\ See supra note 3.
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The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on intramarket competition that is not necessary or
appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act as Trust options
will be equally available to all market participants who wish to trade
such options and will trade generally in the same manner as other
options. The Rules that currently apply to the listing and trading of
all ETF options on BOX, including, for example, Rules that govern
listing criteria, expirations, exercise prices, minimum increments,
margin requirements, customer accounts, and trading halt procedures
will apply to the listing and trading of the Trust options on BOX in
the same manner as they apply to other options on all other ETFs that
are listed and traded on BOX. Also, and as stated above, BOX already
lists options on other commodity-based ETFs (including Bitcoin-
based).\53\ Further, the Trust would need to satisfy the maintenance
listing standards set forth in the Exchange Rules in the same manner as
any other ETF for BOX to continue listing options on them.
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\53\ See Rule 5020(h).
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The Exchange does not believe that the proposal to list and trade
options on the Trust will impose any burden on intermarket competition
that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of
the Act. To the extent that the advent of the Trust options trading on
BOX may make BOX a more attractive marketplace to market participants
at other exchanges, such market participants are free to elect to
become market participants on BOX. The Exchange notes that listing and
trading Trust options on BOX will subject such options to transparent
exchange-based rules as well as price discovery and liquidity, as
opposed to alternatively trading such options in the OTC market. The
Exchange believes that the proposed rule change may relieve any burden
on, or otherwise promote, competition, as it is designed to increase
competition for order flow on BOX in a manner that is beneficial to
investors by providing them with a lower-cost option to hedge their
investment portfolios. The Exchange notes that it operates in a highly
competitive market in which market participants can readily direct
order flow to competing venues that offer similar products. Ultimately,
the Exchange believes that offering Trust options for trading on BOX
will promote competition by providing investors with an additional,
relatively low-cost means to hedge their portfolios and meet their
investment needs in connection with Ethereum prices and Ethereum-
related products and positions on a listed options exchange.
The proposed rule change to exclude options on the Trust from being
eligible for trading as FLEX Equity Options does not impose an undue
burden on intermarket competition because discussions with the
Commission regarding appropriate position limits for ETF options are
ongoing. Finally, the proposed rule change to exclude options on the
Trust from being eligible for trading as FLEX Equity Options does not
impose an undue burden on intramarket competition because no BOX
Participant will be allowed to transact a FLEX Equity Option on the
Trust.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
The Exchange has neither solicited nor received comments on the
proposed rule change.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
The Exchange has filed the proposed rule change pursuant to Section
19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \54\ and Rule 19b-4(f)(6) thereunder.\55\
Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (i) significantly
affect the protection of investors or the public interest; (ii) impose
any significant burden on competition; and (iii) become operative for
30 days from the date on which it was filed, or such shorter time as
the Commission may designate, it has become effective pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A)(iii) of the Act \56\ and subparagraph (f)(6) of
Rule 19b-4 thereunder.\57\
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\54\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(iii).
\55\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
\56\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A)(iii).
\57\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6). In addition, Rule 19b-4(f)(6)
requires a self-regulatory organization to give the Commission
written notice of its intent to file the proposed rule change at
least five business days prior to the date of filing of the proposed
rule change, or such shorter time as designated by the Commission.
The Commission has waived the pre-filing requirement.
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A proposed rule change filed under Rule 19b-4(f)(6) \58\ under the
Act does not normally become operative prior to 30 days after the date
of the filing. However, pursuant to Rule 19b-4(f)(6)(iii),\59\ the
Commission may designate a shorter time if such action is consistent
with the protection of investors and the public interest. The Exchange
has requested that the Commission waive the 30-day operative delay so
that the proposal may become operative immediately upon filing. The
Commission previously approved the listing of options on the iShares
[[Page 16305]]
Ethereum Trust.\60\ The Exchange has provided information regarding the
underlying iShares Ethereum Trust, including, among other things,
information regarding trading volume, the number of shareholders, and
the market capitalization of the iShares Ethereum Trust. The proposal
also establishes position and exercise limits for options on the
iShares Ethereum Trust and provides information regarding the
surveillance procedures that will apply to iShares Ethereum Trust
options. The Commission believes that waiver of the operative delay
could benefit investors by providing an additional venue for trading
iShares Ethereum Trust options. Therefore, the Commission believes that
waiver of the 30-day operative delay is consistent with the protection
of investors and the public interest. Accordingly, the Commission
hereby waives the 30-day operative delay and designates the proposed
rule change as operative upon filing.\61\
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\58\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
\59\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6)(iii).
\60\ See ISE Approval Order, supra note 3.
\61\ For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay,
the Commission has also considered the proposed rule's impact on
efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C.
78c(f).
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At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission will institute proceedings to
determine whether the proposed rule change should be approved or
disapproved.
IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:
Electronic Comments
<bullet> Use the Commission's internet comment form (<a href="https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml">https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml</a>); or
<bullet> Send an email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b6c4c3dad39bd5d9dbdbd3d8c2c5f6c5d3d598d1d9c0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0674736a632b65696b6b636872754675636528616970">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include
file number
SR-BOX-2025-08 on the subject line.
Paper Comments
<bullet> Send paper comments in triplicate to Secretary, Securities
and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to file number SR-BOX-2025-08. This file
number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To help
the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently,
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on
the Commission's internet website (<a href="https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml">https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml</a>). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for website viewing and
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE,
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for
inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. Do not
include personal identifiable information in submissions; you should
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. We
may redact in part or withhold entirely from publication submitted
material that is obscene or subject to copyright protection. All
submissions should refer to file number SR-BOX-2025-08 and should be
submitted on or before May 8, 2025.
For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\62\
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\62\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Sherry R. Haywood,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2025-06506 Filed 4-16-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P
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